Mr. Fornnarino's
English 2, Practice Quiz 24
for ELL Students
For Questions 1-10, please mark the letter of the correct definition of the given vocabulary word.
This space contains
reference material beginning next to Question 11.
For Questions 11-16, please
read the following passage from Chapters 2 of Haruki Murakami’s After
Dark. Choose the best responses to the prompts next to the passage.
There is one and only one correct answer to each prompt.
Chapter 2, pages 35-36
“The
sleeping woman appears to be totally unaware of these events occurring
in her room. She evidences no response to the outpouring of light and
sound from the TV set but goes on sleeping soundly amid an established
completeness. For now, nothing can disturb her deep sleep. The
television is a new intruder into the room. We, too, are intruders, of
course, but unlike us, the new intruder is neither quiet nor
transparent. Nor is it neutral. It is undoubtedly trying to intervene.
We sense its intention intuitively.”
Note: Murakami describes a sleeping woman who
does not react to light or sound from a TV. The TV is an intruder (an
unwanted visitor). We are intruders, but we are different than the TV
because it is not quiet. It cannot be seen through. The TV is trying to
make a difference. We know that.
For
Questions 17-22, please read the following passage from Chapter 3 of Haruki Murakami’s After Dark. Choose the best responses to the
prompts next to the passage. There is one and only one correct answer to
each prompt.
Chapter 3, Page 58
“The man stares at Kaoru
with expressionless eyes. He looks up at the neon sign: Alphaville. He
takes off a glove again, pulls a leather billfold from his jacket
pocket, counts out seven thousand-yen bills, and lets them drop to his
feet. There is no wind: the bills lie flat on the ground. The man puts
his glove back on. He raises his arm and looks at his watch. He performs
each movement with unnatural slowness. He is clearly in no hurry. He
seems to be trying to impress the three women with the sheer weight of
his presence. He can take as much time as he likes for anything. All the
while, the motorcycle engine keeps up its deep rumbling, like a skittish
animal.”
Note: Murakami describes a man who looks at
Kaoru without showing any feelings. The man looks at a sign with the
word "Alphaville." He has money which he drops on the ground. He moves
slowly and is not in a hurry. He knows three women are watching him. He
wants them to look at him and think he is better than they are. His
motorcycle engine is on. It makes a low sound, a sound like a nervous
animal makes.
For Questions 23-25, please read the following
passage from enotes.com regarding the characters of Haruki Murakami’s
After Dark. Choose the best responses to the prompts located next to
the passage. There is one and only one correct answer to each prompt.
“Takahashi is similar to Mari in many ways except that, whereas Mari is
quiet, Takahashi cannot seem to stop talking. Mari keeps her thoughts to
herself for the most part, but Takahashi appears to have to vocalize his
thoughts to better understand them. Takahashi often talks around his
topics when they become too personal. For example, he keeps referencing
Eri’s beauty and attractiveness to keep Mari’s interest. Strangely
enough, this doesn’t seem to bother Mari, as she exhibits no signs of
jealousy. Finally Takahashi admits that his real interest is in Mari,
which comes as a surprise to Mari. She is a bit self-deprecating and
asks Takahashi why he would want to see more of her.”
"After Dark - List of Characters" eNotes Publishing Ed. Scott
Locklear. eNotes.com, Inc. eNotes.com 30 Dec, 2016 <http://www.enotes.com/topics/after-dark-murakami/characters#characters-character-list>
Note: Murakami is saying that Takahashi is like Mari, except
Mari is quiet and Takahashi talks a lot. Takahashi can understand his
thoughts when he says them and can hear them. He talks about Eri to keep
Mari listening to him. Finally, Takahashi says he is interested in Mari.
Mari is surprised. She does not think she is so important that Takahashi
would be interested in her. She asks him why he wants to see more of
her.
deftness
(n.) skill
(n.) sleepiness
dialect
(n.) jargon;
a variation in a language
(adj.) even;
well-formed
reverberate
(v.) to flow
(v.) to vibrate
cascade
(v.) to flow
(v.) to vibrate
orthodox
(adj.) natural
(adj.) regular
profound
(adj.) even;
well-formed
(adj.) intense
somnolence
(n.) skill
(n.) sleepiness
innate
(adj.) natural
(adj.) regular
symmetrical
(adj.) even;
well-formed
(adj.) intense
undulate
(v.) to flow
(v.) to fluctuate
(RL2) Which of the following is NOT an
important motif (a repeated idea) of this passage?
sleep
television
intruder
hospital
(RL2) What would be the best theme
(lesson) to learn from the motifs in the passage?
Television acts as an intruder to the natural restful state of humans.
Intruders in hospitals are often missed by sleeping guards.
(RL4) What is the meaning of the phrase “established completeness” in the fourth line of the passage?
routine state
total confusion
(RL1) What does the word “it”
refer to in the following line? “It is undoubtedly trying to intervene.”
television
light
(RL4) What type of figurative language is being used in the following line? “It is undoubtedly trying to intervene.”
simile
personification
(RL5) Why does Murakami choose to use the phrase, “We sense its intention intuitively”?
He wants to alienate readers and make them feel like their opinions are worthless.
He wants readers to recognize their knowledge of television as an intruding force.
(RL4) What does Murakami mean when he
says the motorcycle rumbles “like a skittish animal”?
The motorcycle needs
to be repaired, like everything else about the rider.
Even a non-living machine is
nervous around the powerful gang member.
(RL3) Which of the following does NOT
give information about the motorcycle rider’s character and attitude?
“He performs each movement with unnatural slowness.”
“He is clearly in no hurry.”
“He looks up at the neon sign: Alphaville.”
“He can take as much time as he likes for anything.”
(RL3) Which character description best
describes the motorcycle rider?
arrogant;
thinking he is better than others
friendly
(RL1) What inference about the
motorcycle rider can be made from the quoted text? (What does the quoted
text suggest is true about the motorcycle rider?) “He seems to be trying to impress the three women with the sheer weight of his presence.”
The biker wants a date with one of the women but is too shy
(too afraid) to ask.
Because of his work,
the biker is used to making people afraid of him by pretending to be better
than they are.
(RL2) What is the central idea of this passage?
The
motorcycle rider has trouble moving quickly because something is wrong with
his body.
The
motorcycle rider does not care about women's feelings or problems.
(RL4) What word from the passage best
shows the central idea?
“expressionless"
“billfold”
(RL2) Which of the following would provide the best summary of the central idea of this paragraph?
Takahashi and Mari are different in many ways, except for
the way they communicate.
Mari
is surprised to learn that Takahashi likes her because he talks so much
about Eri.
(RL1) Which of the following is the best inference that a reader could draw
or make from this passage?
Takahashi frequently dominates conversations while Mari typically says very little.
Takahashi is only talking to Mari so he can get a date with her attractive sister, Eri.
(RL6) What’s the author’s purpose in this passage?
to study
why Takahashi is so interested in Mari’s sister, Eri
to
look at what is happening between Takahashi and Mari to understand a
possible new relationship
Pick the best possessive pronouns to fill in the blanks. As the story reaches ______ ending, the characters get ______ desires.
it’s; there
its; their
Which sentence is written correctly?
One of the 121 applicants was most capable of handling the job and its responsibilities.
One of the 121 applicants were more capable of handling the job and their responsibilities.